Yarn and thread-receiving cores



Sept. 29, 1959 w. P. CRAWLEY YARN AND THREAD-RECEIVING CORES Filed Feb. 23, 1954 COATING OF YARN CONDITIONING o O O o; o o o O O o O O 2 .N.

YARN AND THREAD-RECEIVING CORES William P. Crawley, Swarthmore, Pa., assignor to American Viscose Corporation, Philadelphia, Pa., :1 corporation of Delaware Application February 23, 1954, Serial No. 412,097

Claims. c1. 24z 11s.s2

This invention relates to cores for supporting yarn or thread packages and more particularly to a supporting core provided with a treated surface adapted to appreciably decrease the rise in tension as the yarn adjacent the core is removed. g

It is common in the textile industry to provide yarn packages wherein the yarn or thread is wound upon a core which may be cylindrical or conical. The core is commonly formed of paper and the conventional paper core is provided with a calendered surface which is more or less harsh to the touch. The yarn is wound upon the supporting core in a helical pattern by means of a traverse mechanism. In the manufacture of the yarn or thread, a finish is generally applied to the yarn which serves; as a lubricant, or a twist setting material and a lubricant during the subsequent production of textile fabrics.

The end loops on the core which are formed during the winding operation as the traverse mechanism reverses its direction, tend to slip on the relatively hard, smooth core. surface. In high speed textile producing equipment, such as high speed warping apparatus, high speed filling bobbin apparatus and the like, the yarn or thread is withdrawn over the end of the package; that is, in a direction which is generally axially of the package. The trailing end of one package is tied to the leading end of a second package so as to permit continuous operation. It is essential that the tension in the tread as it is withdrawn from the supporting core should be substantially constant, particularly when transferring from the first package to the second package.

It is well known that in high speed apparatus wherein untreated supporting cores are employed, the tension of the yarn rises sharply as the yarn windings adjacent to and in contact with the core are reached. Thus, as the thread of the first package runs out, the tension may be sufficiently high to cause a break in the thread or yarn. Although the tension may not increase sulficiently to rupture the yarn or thread, the increased tension may be sufficient to cause strains to develop in the yarn-or thread which produces defects in the Woven fabric generally known as shiners.

Considerable efforts have been expended in modifying the supporting surface of the core in attempts to reduce the rise in tension as the yarn is unwound from the core and to maintain a relatively constant tension when the windings in contact with the core are reached. The surface of the core has been subjected to an abrading action to provide a slight nap to the surface. surface, however, continues to exhibit a more or less harshness to the touch because of the inherent nature of paper-making fibers. It has also been proposed to apply flock to the surface of the supporting core. These modifications of the core surface have reduced to some extent the rise in tension as the yarn is unwound from the package; However, such surface treatment has no been entirely satisfactory. I I

The principal purpose ofthe present invention is to provide a supporting core having a surface treatment States Patent M ,hesives tosecure the laminations together.

A 2,906,473 Patented Sept. 29, 1959 which decreases substantially the rise in tension as the thread is unwound from the supporting core. 7 A further purpose of the present invention is to provide a supporting core having a surface treatment whereby 'the tension remains substantially constant as the thread or yarn is unwound from the supporting core. Other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the description and claims which follow.

The present invention is based upon my surprising discovery that the increase in tension when the yarn directly adjacent the supporting core is run off may be decreased substantially, or the tension may be maintained relatively constant by providing the core surface with a coating of a yarn or thread conditioning agent; for example,a lubricantor other finish, such as conventionally appliedto the thread or yarn.

The single figure is a side elevational view showing two yarn supporting cores employing my'invention;

The supporting core may be cylindrical or conical as desired. Preferably, it is in the form of the conventional paper textile cone 1 formed by laminating a fibrous sheet such as paper, chipboard and the like with suitable ad- If desired, the: core or the threadsupporting surface may be formed of other substancessuch as plastics, wood and metal. The surface of the paper core may be subjected to an abrading operation so as to provide a napped surface over the entireyarn-receiving surface of the core, or the abrading may be confined to areasZ adjacent the ends of the windings. As an alternative, the core, whether of paper, plastic, wood or metal, may be provided with a flock surfacing. r The yarn-supporting surface of the core is provided with a coating 3 of the yarn conditioning agent byany desired method. The coating may be applied by spraying or brushing a solution or dispersion of the conditioning agent on the surface of the core, or the core may be dipped into the solution or dispersionf The conventional, paper textile cones with or without a napped or flocked yarn-supporting surface, either those having such surface overtheir entire areas or restricted areas, may be conveniently dipped into a dispersion of the yarn or thread conditioning agent and subsequently dried. The amount of conditioning agent which is applied to the thread or yarn-receiving surface in the case of the paper cones may vary from about 0.1% to about 0.5% by Such weight of the cone. The specific amount of the conditioning agent does not appear to be critical. Conventional paper cones, particularly-those having a napped or flocked yarn-receiving surface, exhibit an appreciably softer feel after receiving the coating of the yarn conditioning agent. The yarn conditioning agent applied to the core or cone may be a lubricating finish, a twist setting finish or any other desired finish. The particular conditioning agent is preferably selected so as to correspond to the general type of finish carried by the yarn or thread which is to be'received by the core or cone. A 1 .The'amount of conditioning material on the yarn'or thread'is' not necessarily a'rneasure of the increase in tension at the runoff when the yarn is supported on an untreated cone or corel For example, it has been found that, in general, an increase in the lubricity of the yarn or thread when run on certain conventional tensioning devices actually increases the tension at the run off. A reduction in the lubricity of the yarn does not reduce this increase in tension sufficiently to avoid imparting strains to the yarn. Thus, although only a very light or very thin coating of the conditioning agent has been applied to the yarn, the increase in tension will impart some strains to the yarn. v.

For the purposes of illustrating this invention, reference may be made to a variety of yarn or thread conditioning agents or materials which are satisfactory for the treatment of yarn or thread-receiving surfaces. The agents may be dissolved in a suitable organic solvent or dispersed in Water, and the organic solvent or water removed after application of the liquid to the yarn supporting surface. The concentration of the conditioning agent in the liquid may be varied so as to supply the desired quantity of conditioning agent on the surface of the core. The invention is applicable to cores employed as collectors or supports for both natural and synthetic fibers and filaments such as cotton, wool, linen, silk, regenerated cellulose, cellulose esters, nylon, vinyl resins and the like.

The coating material may be of a soapy or Waxy nature which when applied to threads or yarns is of sufiicient solidity to set the twist and maintain the set during the course of the weaving, knitting or other textile operations and has a sufficiently low melting point so as to serve as a lubricant during the textile operations. Coatings of this type are disclosed in Patent No. 2,297,135 and include alkali metal salts of saturated fatty acids, partial esters of polyhdric alcohols with saturated fatty acids, preferably the partial esters of polyhydric alcohols in which at least one pair of hydroxyl groups have combined to produce a cyclic inner ether. Representative substances of this class are sodium stearate, glycerol monostearate, mannitan palmitate, mannide dipalmitate, sorbitan monomyristate and the like. An organic solvent solution of the coating material may be applied to the yarn or thread-receiving surface as by brushing or spraying, or the core or cone may be dipped into the solution after which the solvent is allowed to vaporize.

Other conditioning agents such as the ethylene oxide modified esters of higher fatty acids and polyhydric alcohols are equally satisfactory. These compounds may be prepared as described in Patent No. 2,418,752 by first condensing an olefine oxide such as ethylene or propylene oxide with one or more polyhydric alcohols such as glycerol, sorbitol, mannitan, glucose, sugars and the like, and subjecting the condensation product to esterification with the higher saturated fatty acids. This type of finish may be applied to the yarn-receiving surface by utilizing either an organic solvent solution of the conditioning agent or an aqueous dispersion of the agent.

The conventional lubricating finishes which generally consist essentially of a lubricating agent and an emulsifying agent with or without a buffer have been found to be highly satisfactory for the purposes of this invention. For example, in Patent No. 2,663,989, there is disclosed a yarn lubricating agent comprising a waxy partial ester, a waxy partial mixed ester, or a waxy mixture of partial esters of an anhydro hexahydric alcohol and a fatty acid of at least 16 carbon atoms, a water-soluble or water-dispersible binding colloid, an emulsifying agent and a butter. This type of conditioning agent may be applied by utilizing aqueous dispersions which are illustrated by the following examples:

Example I Parts by weight Polyvinyl alcohol 0.52 Sorbitan monopalmitate 0.13 Modified castor oil 0.92 Sodium oleate 0.38 Water 88 Example 11 Parts by weight Sodium carboxymethylcellulose 0.2 Sorbitan monopalmitate 0.05 Sorbitan tristearate reacted with an average of 16 moles of ethylene oxide per molecule 0.05 Hydrogenated castor oil modified with 150 ethylene oxide units per molecule 0.3 Sodium sorbitol borate 0.2 Water 89.2

I have also found that the type of finishes such as disclosed in the copending application of Carl Schlatter, Serial No. 132,994, now Patent No. 2,690,427, dated September 28, 1954, are highly satisfactory as coatings for the cores or cones in accordance with this invention. This type of yarn conditioning agent or finish consists of an aqueous dispersion containing an alkoxyalkyl ester of a fatty acid and an emulsifying agent consisting of an ethylene oxide condensation product of a tri-ester of an inner ether of a hexitol with a saturated fatty acid, with or without a buffer.

The following specific yarn finishes of this type have been satisfactorily employed in the coating of paper cones having abraded and napped yarn-receiving surfaces:

Example Ill Parts by weight Butyl cellosolve stearate 0.2 Condensation product of sorbitan tristearate (1 mole) with ethylene oxide (16 moles) 0.2 Sodium sorbitol borate 0.05 Water 99.55

Example IV Parts by weight Ethoxyethyl stearate 0.5 Condensation product of sorbitan tripalmitate (1 mole) with ethylene oxide (16 moles) 0.5 Sodium sorbitol borate 0.1 Water 98.9

Example V Parts by weight Condensation product of stearic acid (1 mole) with ethylene oxide (2 moles) 0.2 Condensation product of sorbitan tristearate (1 mole) with ethylene oxide (16 moles) 0.2 Sodium sorbitol borate 0.05

Water 99.55

The foregoing specific conditioning agents are merely set forth for purposes of illustration. The conditioning agents are of types employed for setting twist in yarns and for rendering the yarns more suitable for the usual textile operations such as weaving, knitting and the like. Buffers such as sodium oleate, sodium sorbitol borate and the like are optional ingredients. These buffers are particularly suitable in conditioning agents for freshly spun regenerated cellulose yarns or filaments which may carry traces of acid or zinc which have not been completely removed in the usual after treatments. The borates are particularly advantageous because any zinc, calcium or magnesium salts which may be carried onto the core surface will form soluble compounds and thereby maintain the desired surface texture. The specific conditioning agent may be selected to best suit the specific conditions.

The present invention may be illustrated specifically by reference to tests conducted on a conventional high speed filling bobbin winder known commercially as an Abbott winder. In all tests, a yarn tension of approximately 25 grams was used and all winding was done at a temperature of F. and a relative humidity of 55%. An average of 30 quills was wound for each of the test lots consisting of 10 cones each and the increase in tension at the run off was recorded. The pretreated cones had been treated by the application of a conditioning agent as set forth in Example V, the coating amounting to about 0.2% based on the weight of the cones. The following data was obtained from these tests:

than The efiective increase in tension is twice the recorded tension due to a multiplication of tension on this commercial type bobbin or quill winder. The bobbins or quills were subsequently employed in weaving operations approximating commercial practice. The finished fabric prepared in such weaving tests reveal that strains were apparent in those portions of the fabrics corresponding to the run offs for the first and second lots of cones. However, no strains were apparent for the fabric prepared from the yarn on the pretreated cones.

These tests illustrate the substantial reduction in the increase in tension which results as the yarn is unwound from the coated supporting surface. Although the increase in tension is not eliminated, the increase is reduced sufliciently to avoid excessive straining of the yarn or thread and thereby eliminate the resulting high luster areas or shiners in the finished textile.

I claim:

1. As an article of manufacture, a supporting core for a yarn, thread and the like package comprising a yarnsupporting surface adapted to be engaged by the innermost windings of said package and a coating of a yarn conditioning agent on said surface, said coated surface exhibiting a substantial reduction in the increase in tension required to remove said innermost windings from said coated surface as compared to the increase in tension required to remove innermost windings from a like uncoated yarn-supporting surface.

2. An as article of manufacture, a supporting core for a yarn, thread and the like package comprising a yarnsupporting surface adapted to be engaged by the innermost windings of said package and a coating of a yarn lubricating finish on said surface, said coated surface exhibiting a substantial reduction in the increase in tension required to remove said innermost windings from said coated surface as compared to the increase in tension required to remove innermost windings from a like uncoated yarn-supporting surface.

3. As an article of manufacture, a supporting core for a yarn, thread and the like package comprising a paper textile core having a yarn-supporting surface adapted to be engaged by the innermost windings of said package and a coating of between about 0.1% and 0.5% by weight of the cone of a yarn conditioning agent on said surface, said coated surface exhibiting a substantial reduction in the increase in tension required to remove said innermost windings from said coated surface as compared to the increase in tension required to remove innermost windings from a like uncoated yarn-supporting surface.

4. As an article of manufacture, a supporting core for a yarn, thread and the like package comprising a paper textile core having a yarn-supporting surface adapted to be engaged by the innermost windings of said package and a coating of between about 0.1% and about 0.5% by weight of the cone of a yarn lubricating finish on said surface, said coated surface exhibiting a substantial reduction in the increase in tension required to remove said innermost windings from said coated surface as compared to the increase in tension required to remove innermost windings from a like uncoated yarn supporting surface.

5. As an article of manufacture, a supporting core for a yarn, thread and the like package comprising a paper textile cone having a napped yarn-supporting surface adapted to be engaged by the innermost windings of said package and a coating of a yarn conditioning agent on the said napped surface, said coated surface exhibiting a substantial reduction in .the increase in tension required to remove said innermost windings from said coated surface as compared to the increase in tension required to remove innermost windings from a like uncoated yarn-supporting surface.

6. As an article of manufacture, a supporting core for 1 a yarn, thread and the like package comprising a paper textile cone having a napped yarn-supporting surface adapted to be engaged by the innermost windings of said package and a coating of a yarn lubricating finish on the said napped surface, said coated surface exhibiting a substantial reduction in the increase in tension required to remove said innermost windings from said coated surface as compared to the increase in tension required to remove innermost windings from a like uncoated yarn-supporting surface.

7. As an article of manufacture, a supporting core for a yarn, thread and the like package comprising a paper textile cone having a flocked yarn-supporting surface adapted to be engaged by the innermost windings of said package and a coating of a yarn conditioning agent on said flocked surface, said coated surface exhibiting a substantial reduction in the increase in tension required to remove said innermost windings from said coated surface as compared to the increase in tension required to remove innermost windings from a like uncoated yarn-supporting surface.

8. As an article of manufacture, a supporting core for a yarn, thread and the like package comprising a paper textile cone having a flocked yarn-supporting surface adapted to be engaged by the innermost windings of said package and a coating of a yarn lubricating finish on said flocked surface, said coated surface exhibiting a substantial reduction in the increase in tension required to remove said innermost windings from said coated surface as compared to the increase in tension required to remove innermost windings from a like uncoated yarn-supporting surface.

9. A yarn package comprising yarn wound in package form on a supporting core having a yarn-supporting surface and a coating of a yarn-conditioning agent on said surface, said coated supporting surface retaining the inner windings of said yarn package against slippage thereon while allowing said inner windings to be delivered continuously and completely therefrom with a substantial reduction in the increase in delivery tension required to remove said innermost windings from said coated surface as compared to the increase in delivery tension required to remove said innermost windings from a like uncoated yamsupporting surface.

10. A yarn package as defined in claim 9 wherein the yarn-conditioning agent is a yarn lubricating finish.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,321,861 Tiffany Nov. 18, 1919 2,327,738 Perry Aug. 24, 1943 2,430,710 Dunlap Nov. 11, 1947 2,605,979 Gartrell Aug. 5, 1952 2,663,989 Schlatter et a1 Dec. 29, 1953 2,666,599 Battersley Jan. 19, 1954 2,702,167 Biggs Feb. 15, 1955 FOREIGN PATENTS 450,356 Great Britain July 8, 1936 

